Happy Thanksgiving to all!

We will be going to see my mom and dad and then rushing back here Saturday to start baking cookies for the “Cookies for Santa” on Monday along with the crowning of Saint Nick. While sticking in an extra practice for our Demopolis Singer’s Concert which will be on Sunday at 2:30 and Monday at 7:30. Hint, hint!

Looking through my cookbooks, I came across several versions of the cherished, southern Red Velvet Cake. I took a little from each of these recipes and added a little of my own. It will impress!

I’m also sneaking in one of the Cookie’s for Santa recipes to the side, altered to make it more for Thanksgiving, ‘Maple Sugar Cookies’.

Truly Divine Red Velvet Cake

Cake:

2 Cups sugar

2 sticks of real butter, room temp

2 eggs

2 tbs cocoa powder

2 ounces of red food coloring

2 and a half cups cake flour (usually comes in a box)

1 tsp salt

1 cup buttermilk

1 tsp vanilla extract

half tsp baking soda

1 tbs red wine vinegar

Icing:

1 8 oz. package cream cheese

1 stick butter, softened

1 stick margarine, softened

1 cup melted marshmallows

one-third cup half and half

1 Tbs vanilla extract or (Vanilla Bean Paste) you can’t get it here

1 tbs cake flour

2 boxes or 1 32 oz. bag of confectioners’ sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour or use cake release on 3 (8 inch) cake pans.

In a mixing bowl or electric mixer, cream the sugar and butter, beat until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time and mix well after each one. Mix cocoa and food coloring together and then add to the sugar mixture. Mix well. Sift together your flour and salt. Add the flour mixture to the sugar mixture alternately with the buttermilk. Blend in vanilla. In a small bowl, combine baking soda and red wine vinegar and add to the mixture. Pour batter evenly into your pans. Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool completely before frosting.

Icing: Blend cream cheese, butter, and margarine (leaving out 1 tablespoon of the butter) together in a mixing bowl. Melt that 1 tablespoon of butter in a sauce pan and add a heaping cup of marshmallows to melt. Add marshmallows, vanilla or paste, and half-and-half to the mixture and blend well. Add you cake flour and sugar slowly and blend well. Ice between your layers of cake and then on top and sides of your cake. Decorate with pecans, or red sugar or whatever you like.

Until next time, have fun in the kitchen, experiment, and indulge your cravings!

Maple Sugar Cookie

2/3 cup shortening

(I use butter flavored shortening)

1 1/4 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 Tbs half and half

1/2 to 1 tsp of maple flavoring

(it depends on how maple you like them)

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp salt

2 tsp baking powder

Mix all ingredients, refrigerate (for at least an hour),

roll out dough and cut out cookies. Bake at 375 for about

10 to 12 minutes. I like to use pearl dust for cakes

to dust my cookies with while they are hot to give them a shimmer.